


Persona 5: An Alternate Story

by KrisTheDragon



Category: Persona 5
Genre: F/M, I'll try not to give spoilers, Maybe - Freeform, Ryuji's best friend, but prepare your heart for angst, gonna change some things, might change the ending too
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-06
Updated: 2018-07-29
Packaged: 2019-03-01 06:50:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13289367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KrisTheDragon/pseuds/KrisTheDragon
Summary: What if the protagonist of Persona 5 was a bit... Different? What would change? This is my story with my original character, Sumomo Inoue.





	1. Chapter 1

The tension was high. The crowd was on edge, looking around in fear. Above them, a set of coattails flicked in the wind as a thief jumped from chandelier to chandelier. She stood on the edge of one, looking down at the ground, a soft smile on her lips and green eyes glittering. 

“Look! Up there!” someone in the crowd yelled, pointing. The thief looked over the crowd, watching the men in suits approach her from below. She let out a soft chuckle as she turned and landed on top of a display.

“Good, now get running!”

“This is our only chance!”

“Stay calm! You can get away now!”

“We will retrieve the briefcase on our end.”

Garbled messages started playing in the girl’s head.

“Hm? What was that?”

“Don't worry about us - just worry about getting away!”

The thief nodded, jumping over displays and neon lights.

“I have to say, though, showing yourself above the crowd was an excellent move. Nice work as always, Joker.”

“I bet Skull wouldn't be able to pull it off that smoothly.”

“This happens because you have no sense for aesthetics.”

“Nobody asked you, Inari!”

Joker laughed at her friends as she jumped up onto another light fixture. 

“There she is!” someone from the crowd yelled. Joker examined her escape route as she progressed; unfortunately, two men in suits were positioned on the balcony ahead.

“Just run! Get out of there!”

Joker nodded, turning and jumping across a bridge of lights.

“Everyone's focus is on her. The rest of us can slip away.”

“Everyone remember where we are meeting up?”

“Don't worry, I can guide you all!”

Joker didn't answer, only pulled herself up onto the balcony above her.

“Stop right there!” “You won't get away!”

Two men in suits slid in front of Joker and started vibrating, masks of silver appearing on their faces. She turned around, seeing one more coming up behind her.

“Take 'em down, Joker!”

Joker pulled her hat down and smiled. Of course she would. She jumped up in the air, landing on the shadow and gripping the mask, pulling it off with a tug. The man exploded into a puddle of red and black goo and rose a strange creature with a bull’s head.

“Comparing power levels… no threat. Take it down, Joker!”

The thief smirked, pulling off her mask. “Arsene!” She yelled. Blue fire erupted around her as a being wearing a black suit with a red coat appeared. “Eigaon!” A black face appeared at the bull’s feet and roared up, hitting the bull as it passed by and causing damage.

The bull roared in pain, casting its own magic. A pillar of fire erupted around Joker causing damage to the lady thief. But she wasn't done. Her smirk turned into a full smile as she pulled her mask off once again. “Arsene! Brave Blade!” The horned devil behind Joker stomped on the ground, causing three blades of light to appear and slash at the bull, causing it to howl as it was defeated.

“Good, you defeated them with ease!”

“More of them!? Be careful!”

Three more men in suits appeared, one carrying an electrified nightstick. They attacked Joker, but she backflipped and jumped onto a light display out of their reach, then onto the balcony above it.

“Joker, behind you! Go through that door!”

Joker turned to see a pair of doors open wide into a dark hallway. She nodded, running through the door.

“You should be able to get out that way! Hurry!”

“Dude can she even hear us?”

 

“Don't worry, I'm picking up everyone’s voices. Just go, Joker!”

Joker nodded again, taking off down the hallway. She opened a door to see a man in black running past the window in front of her, and dove behind the door again. “Where did they go, dammit! I can't confirm the Intruders location!” He took off in another direction.

That was close, Joker thought as she emerged, about to turn the corner when she saw another agent.

“This is bad! Quick, hide!”

Joker hid behind a crate, peeking out at the man.

“You'll never get anywhere if you keep fighting… stay hidden and look for an opening!”

Joker nodded, rolling forward behind the next crate. After checking to make sure the agent had his back turned, she jumped behind the wall next to him.

“Hey are you sure he came in this way?” The man was speaking into his Bluetooth, “Understood. I will continue the search!” He ran past Jokers hiding spot and turned into the doors.

“Now's your chance! Run!”

Joker jumped out of her spot and ran up the stairs. When she turned the corner she saw a room full of casino employees. They were all busy looking at the cameras so she ran as quietly as she could past them.

She ran as fast as she could up the stairs, listening to the voices of her friends to guide her. She burst out some doors above the main floor, running to the balcony and looking over the crowd below.

“What's wrong? The exit should be right there.”

“Through there…?” Joker asked, looking up at the stained glass window on the other side of the balcony.

“Ngh…! That's just how it is. After all that commotion the first floor is…”

“Completely closed off. Hey, can you make it?”

Joker smiled, adrenaline pumping through her. “Of course.”

“Stop right there!” Joker turned to see three men holding guns behind her. “There's nowhere to run!”

“That's what you think,” Joker smiled wider, jumping up onto the railing. She took off, snickering at the dumbfounded faces of the men behind her.

She ended up in front of the stain glass window with no problems. “See ya!” She said cheerfully as she jumped through the window, doing a flip into the night.

“hmph! What a show off.”

“You're so reckless, you know that?”

“That's why you all love me,” Joker said with a grin as she landed, rolling on the ground as glass fell. She stood up again to get her bearings when a bright light was shined in her eyes. More lit up, illuminating the entire area. Spotlights.

“Enemies, here?!”

“What's wrong?!”

“These readings… it can't be!”

“What happened?!”

“An ambush?!”

“Joker, can you handle this?!”

“Joker!”

“Oh no!”

Joker looked over the police officers before her, taking a deep breath to calm down.

“Capture her!” One of the officers yelled to them.

Joker took off, the lights following her. She spotted a fire escape on the wall and speed up, jumping up to it and pulling herself up with a grin. They won't catch me. She climbed up the ladder and froze.

Above her were five officers with face masks and gun. Before Joker could react, she saw the butt of a rifle hit her in the face. The shock and brunt force from the attack caused her to let go and fall into the waiting crowd of officers below.

“We got her!”

“Suspect secure!”

Joker was pushed to the ground and held there. It's not like I'm gonna attack any of you… jeez.

Some of the officers parted to let one man through to her. She couldn't see him face, but she could hear his voice.

“...I didn't expect to find some kid.”

The man knelt down and grabbed Joker’s orange hair. She grit her teeth to keep from screaming in pain.

“You have your teammate to thank for this,” the man said, “you were sold out.”

Joker let the surprise show on her face, then sighed. As expected…

“Suspect confirmed! Cuff her!” Joker felt the handcuffs being put on her wrists and glared at the officers as she was taken away.


	2. The Room

“Guess the drug was too strong…”

The ginger girl struggled to stay conscious, her yellow-green eyes blinking rapidly.

“Wake her up.”

Someone splashed water on her face, making her cough and shiver. She raised her face to glare at the men surrounding her.

“No dozing off.”

Not like I was trying to, jackass.

The girl coughed again, pulling the handcuffs on her wrists. Good thing you guys drugged me and tied me up, 'cause otherwise all of you would be bleeding.

The angry student shook her head, flipping her wet bangs out of her face and continued to glare. “You still don’t get it, do you?” The leader asked, raising his foot. “Give it up!” The man’s foot collided with the ginger’s stomach, sending her flying off her chair. Sh lay in a puddle left by the bucket of water, writhing and struggling to breathe.

“Come on,” the detective said, stomping on the girl’s head, making her see stars for a moment, “or what, you want another shot?”

That hurts, asshole. Torture and drugs won’t get me to talk.

The girl’s eyes traveled up to the corner of the ceiling, where a camera was recording everything.

“Hm? What about the camera?” the detective asked, “you think it can be used for evidence?” He grabbed her by her hair and forced her head up to look at him.

“I’m not stupid,” the girl growled under her breath.

“Well isn’t that grand,” the detective said, “we’ve got a mouthy one.” He slammed her head back onto the floor and stood up. “That’s good, ‘cause we get to take as much time as we NEED!” He kicked the girl in the stomach, making her gag and cough as, once again, she struggled to breathe.

The detective walked a few steps away from her, towards one of the men holding a clipboard, taking it from him.

“Obstruction of justice, blackmail, defamation, possession of weapons…” he read through the list on the clipboard, “manslaughter, too? Talk about the works. To think that all those crimes were led by a bitch like this.” He turned to the girl again, “And you seemed to be enjoying every second of it, huh.”

‘Course I did. ‘Cause of assholes like you.

Almost as if reading her mind, the detective shook his head. “...you should know your place.” He jerks his head at one of the men, who nodded and walked around behind the girl and knelt down to take her handcuffs off and push her into a seated position.

It’s about time, the girl thought, rubbing her wrists.

The clipboard was shoved in her face. “Sign here. It’s a confession in your name.”

The girl glared at the detective. Even she knew, if she tried to refuse, they’d just torture her more until she signed it. Rather than go through with that, she took the clipboard.

The detective pulled a pen out of his pocket and handed it to her. When she reached to grab it, he leaned in.

“Don’t expect to get out of here in one piece,” he said, “we are going to make you understand… one must take full responsibility for their actions.”

The girl took the pen from the detective with a grunt, holding the clipboard up. With a shaky hand, she signed her name.

"Sumomo Inoue"


	3. Chapter 3

The men finally left. I remained seated in the chair, staring at the table in front of me. My head was swimming in a murky puddle, but I kept trying to stay conscious. Why?

Outside I heard talking. “I’m Sae Nijima from the Public Prosecutor’s Office.”

I rubbed my forehead. Someone important to me… but why?

The swimming feeling suddenly intensified, making me want to hurl. I lay my head down on the table, facing the wall. The cool feeling of the metal helped somewhat.

The door opened, but I didn’t look up. “I… did not expect it to be you,” the woman said above me.

“We’re all full of surprises,” I mumbled, picking my head up to look at her.

She didn’t comment, just looked at me with her dark eyes. “You’ll be answering my questions this time,” she told me. *No shit, Sherlock.*

She looked around and saw the needles all over the floor. “Those… bastards…” Nijima whispered under her breath.

“Can you hear me? It seems as though you’ve been through a lot,” she said to me, looking sympathetic, “almost anything can happen here… and I can’t stop them. That’s why I need you to answer me honestly. I don’t have much time, either.”

I remained silent, just staring at her.

“What was your objective? Why did you cause such a major incident? I didn’t think it was a prank from the get-go, but I couldn’t assemble a case for prosecution because I couldn’t figure out the method behind it,” she told me.

“Of course you wouldn’t. There’s a lot of things at work behind the Phantom Thieves that you wouldn’t fully understand,” I finally spoke, my voice a little hoarse.

“Heh. True,” Nijima said, “There’s no way I could be convinced of such a… “world” just by reading the reports.” She eyes me for a moment before speaking again. “It seems you’re coherent. When and where did you find out about that world? How is it even possible to steal another’s heart? Tell me your account of everything. ...start from the very beginning.”

I looked down at the table, rubbing my forehead. The very beginning…

Before I spoke, I saw a light out of the corner of my eye. I looked up to see a glowing blue butterfly flying past me.  
“...You are held captive,” a voice echoed in my mind.

“A prisoner of fate to a future that has been sealed in advance,” another spoke.

“This is truly an unjust game… your chances of winning are almost none,” the first voice spoke again, “but if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open to you…”

“...I beg you,” the second voice said, “please, overcome this game… and save the world…”

“The key to victory lies within the memories of your bonds - the truth you and your friends grasped. It all began that day… when the game was started half a year ago…”

“For the sake of your world’s future… as well as your own… you must remember…”

As I watched the butterfly disappear in a flash of light, the two voices vanished as well. I took a deep breath, looking back at Nijima.

“It started…” I whispered, “about half a year ago…”


	4. Chapter 4

I awoke with a start. For a few moments, I didn’t know where I was… but then it came back. I sighed. What a mess I’d gotten myself into.

“Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for riding with us today. We will be arriving in Shibuya shortly.This is the last stop for this line. Please transfer here for all subway lines. The doors to your left will open.”

I looked down at the instrument case in my lap, and my fingers closed tightly around the handle. My mind flashed back to that time…

The woman crying out for help. All I did was tap the man on the shoulder and he fell.

“Damn brat! I’ll sue!”

As I was grinding my teeth in frustration a nearby conversation caught my attention.

“What? Are you for real? A mental shutdown?”

“It’s the truth!”

“To a person, though? That’s gotta be a joke. You really love all that occult stuff, don’t you?”

Two girls were happily gossiping near the doors. Internally, I groaned, feeling a headache growing in the back of my head.

The train pulled into the station and I got off, pulling out the map navigation app on my phone and putting in the address I was given. I walked through the city square, looking around at all the people. ‘This place is a lot different than home,’ I thought to myself, ‘there’s way too many people.’ With so many strange faces, it was easy to feel alone in a crowd. My knees started to shake and I took a deep breath to try to calm myself down. No use getting anxious now.

A noise sounded on my phone and I looked down at it. A weird eye looking square had appeared on my map. “Weird….” I muttered, as it suddenly grew in size and too over half of my map. I tapped the screen, trying to clear it so I can look back at my map. But it wouldn’t go away.

I looked back up and did a double-take. Everything around me had frozen, people froze in place mid-stride.

My heart started to pound and my hands started to shake. I looked around frantically, confused - what was going on?

Across the crowd, I saw a large blue flame, taller than the heads of all the people surrounding it. My whole body felt cold. Fire was never good. But I couldn’t stop staring at it. The fire started to take on a form… humanoid in nature… and wings suddenly sprouted from its back, sending a gust of wind over the frozen crowd.

My heart pounded harder as I tried to consciously move my feet. I needed to run. But my body wouldn’t listen.

From within the blue flames, two bright yellow eyes and a big smile appeared. I tried to scream, but it was stuck in my throat. And the flames cleared…

What the hell is going on? A reflection of myself emerged from the flames, grinning widely. But… the reflection’s eyes were yellow… and they wouldn’t stop staring at me…

Just as I thought my heart would burst from fear, the flames cleared and the reflection vanished. Time started moving around me again. I stood rooted to the spot, hand on my chest as I tried to force myself to calm down.

When I looked back down at my phone, the eye was still there. I quickly dragged it to the little trash can icon, deleting it before continuing to my next train.

About an hour later I arrived at the back streets of Yongen-Jaya.

‘Okay… I’m headed to… Sojiro Sakura’s house…’ I thought to myself, taking a few steps forward. But anxiety gripped my heart once again and I froze.

“Ho, there!” a nearby police officer called out to me, “don’t stand in the middle of the street, you’ll bump into someone!”

“A-ah, sorry!” I called out, hurrying past him. My whole body was shaking. I turned down an alley, hoping to get out of the officer’s line of sight. I placed my hand on the wall, taking deep breaths. When I looked around, I saw a nameplate that said “Sakura.” When I checked the address, it matched. ‘Huh… lucky,” I muttered, pressing the doorbell. There was no answer.

Just as anxiety started creeping up, I heard muttering nearby.

“Looks like no one’s home…”

I turned to look, seeing a delivery man standing nearby looking at his clipboard.

“OH, yeah… Sakura-san’s usually at his cafe around this time. Well, LeBlanc’s in the back alley, so I should make my other deliveries first…”

So the other alley I passed. I quickly backtracked, turning into the alley and noting the “LeBlanc” sign outside a small cafe. I took several deep breaths to calm my nerves and opened the door.

“A public transit bus was driven down an opposing lane with its customers still in it! The citizens can’t live in peace if this keeps up.” The news was playing on the small TV along the back wall. I looked around. An elderly couple was sitting at a nearby booth, and a middle-aged man was sitting by the bar, reading the newspaper.

“How frightening…” the elderly man said to his wife, his eyes glued to the TV.

“What could be going on? Didn’t something similar happen just the other day?” the woman inquired.

“Hm… Vertical is… the name os a shellfish used for farming pearls…” the middle-aged man mumbled.

“...oysters,” I muttered, but I doubted he could hear me.

But maybe he did because he looked up at me. “Oh… right. They did say that was today.” He put the newspaper on the bar and stood up.

“I apologize for interrupting,” I said with a small bow.

“We will be going now,” the elderly gentleman said, standing, “the payment is on the table.”

“Thanks for coming.”

“This place is in the back alley, so there are no worries of a car crashing in here.” The elder seemed relieved.

“A what now?” the newspaper guy asked.

“There’s been a string of those rampage accidents, you know. I just hope that none happen around here.”

“It’s none of my concern.”

Jeez, how does this guy get customers?

The elder chuckled. “Well, we’ll see you next time.”

The elderly couple left, and the other man sighed. “Four hours for a single cup of joe…” he grumbled. He turned to look at me. “So. You’re Sumomo?”  
“Y-yes. Please take care of me,” I replied with a bow.

“Uh-huh. I’m Sojiro Sakura. You’ll be in my custody over the next year,” he said, “I was wondering what kind of unruly kid would show up, but you’re the one, huh?”

I nodded, silent. I knew people would judge me over what happened, but I never thought myself as “unruly”.

“Have you been told?” Sakura asked, “A customer of mine and your parents know each other and- well, not that it matters. Follow me.”

He turned and walked into the back, leading me up the stairs. The attic was a pigsty. The was dust everywhere, trash bags, old papers… you name it, it was there. I grimaced slightly. Cleaning was something I did not enjoy.

“This is your room,” Sakura said, turning to me, “I’ll at least give you sheets for your bed.” He looked my face over for a moment. “You look like you wanna say something.”

“...It’s big,” was all I said.

“IT’s on you to clean up the rest,” he sighed.

‘Wait… so it was messier before? What the hell?’ I thought to myself, fighting to keep a poker face.

“I’ll be leaving after I lock up each day. You’ll be alone at night, but don’t do anything stupid. I’ll throw you out if you cause any trouble.”

‘Jeez… what a hardass.’

“Now then… I got the gist of your situation,” he said, folding his arms, “you protected some woman from a man forcing himself on her, he got injured, then sued you. Right?”

“Correct.”

“That’s what you get for sticking your nose in a matter between two adults. You dd injure him, yeah?”

‘Not like you were there to judge, old man,’ I thought angrily, ‘you can quit spouting your nonsense.’ But I couldn’t say those words out loud. I fought to keep my poker face.

“...and now that you’ve got a criminal record, you were expelled from your high school,” he continued, “The courts ordered you to transfer and move out here, which your parents also approved. In other words, they got rid of you for being a pain in the ass.”

You don’t know my parents, asshole. Shut. Up.

“It’s best you do not talk about anything unnecessary. I am in the restaurant business, you know. Behave yourself for the year. If nothing happens, your probation will be lifted,” he finished.

I nodded quietly. I was too pissed to speak. It took all my concentration to keep my poker face. My fingers were clenched around the handle of my instrument case.

“Cause any problems and you will be sent straight to Juvie,” Sakura warned, “on that note, we’re going to Shujin tomorrow.”

“Shujin?” I asked.

“Shujin Academy - the school you will be attending,” Sakura sighed, “We will introduce ourselves properly to the staff there. There’s rarely a place that’ll accept someone like you, you know.” He looked away and sighed. “What a waste of my Sunday…”

My fist clenched tighter.

“Your luggage arrived earlier; I left it over there.” He glanced at the cardboard box in the middle of the dost-covered floor. After that, he went down the stairs.

I placed a hand over my heart and took several deep breaths again. ‘Jeez… how infuriating. I know people were going to treat me different but damn…’ I thought to myself, setting my instrument case on the table and going to the cardboard box. ‘...I should check what’s in here. IT’ll help me calm down at least.’

I opened the box and was greeted with the sight of necessities and clothing. “Guess I’ll change for now,” I muttered to myself, tossing on a black shirt with “heartbreaker” written in glittery pink cursive and a pair of plaid lounge pants.

I then rolled up the pink and black striped sleeves and looked around. ‘Where should I start cleaning…’ I thought to myself.

I started dusting, mopping, cleaning off the bed and the couch, and fitting the bed with the sheets Sakura gave me. Finally, I moved some of the bags of coffee around on the shelves, setting my cardboard box of storage on the bottom shelf.

When I looked out the window, it was dark. I hadn’t realized I had been cleaning for so long.  
“What the heck?” a voice asked. I turned and saw Sakura looking around the room. “I heard you making all sorts of noise up here, but I didn’t think you were cleaning.”

It’s not like someone can live in a dump, asshole.

He was nodding to himself as he looked around. “Actually, the place doesn’t look too bad.”

No thanks to you.

“Though it’s only natural you’d want to keep your room tidy.”

As I said.

“Why don’t you go to bed for tonight? You don’t have anything… better…” He eyes fell on the instrument case on the table. “...you play music?”

“Violin,” I replied, “and I won’t be playing when there are customers here.”

“...good. I’m going to close up shop then.” He peered at me over his glasses. “I won’t be the one looking after you if you make yourself sick from staying up too late, you got that?”

“Got it,” I replied quietly and watched him go back down the stairs. When I heard him leave, I sat on the bed with a sigh.

‘So much has happened… arrest… trial… Now I have a criminal record…’ I thought, rubbing my forehead. The memory of that night flashed through my head again. ‘Still… I don’t regret it. If I hadn’t intervened… that woman would be worse off.. And I didn’t want to let it go…’

‘That day… I had to go home early…’


	5. Notice from the Author

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Message from the Author

Apologies but I'm putting the story of P5: AAS on a hiatus. To be put simply, I'm tired of the toxicity of the fandom against both Akechi and Ryuji and honestly just wanna see some positivity for once.

This doesn't mean I'm going to stop writing, though! I'm going to be making a separate story called "Sumomo's One-Shots" where I'll be rewriting scenes from the game with Sumomo added, or even just scenes that people request.

When I get my patience for the fandom back (or *if* I get it back) I'll return to P5: AAS. For now, see you in the one-shots!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes if you wanna see some positive stuff you gotta make it yourself. So, for now, I'm returning but I might go on hiatus again in the future.

I remembered the scene quite clearly. The man trying to force the woman in the car, someone calling the cops and hearing the sirens...

I shook my head vigorously to get the image out of my head. ‘I shouldn’t let it bring me down. I just have to survive the year…’

I fell onto my pillow with a sigh and closed my eyes. Just one year…

My phone rang in my pocket. With a grumble, I pulled it out. The weird eyeball was back on m phone.

“I thought I deleted this,” I muttered to myself, dragging it to the trashcan again before putting it on the shelf next to me. Then I forced my eyes closed.

When I opened them again, I had no clue where I was. There were chains on my wrists and one of my ankles. Rather than laying on my bed, I now laid down upon a cot. I sat up with a start and looked around. I was in a cell… a cell with blue walls. I gently touched the wall next to me. ‘Who the hell puts blue velvet on the walls of a cell?’ I thought to myself, ‘it’s… so soft.’

I heard a chuckle off to the side and I looked. Two little girls, twins, were staring at me on the other side of the cell doors. Both of them had eyepatches on the opposite eye.

I stood up and carefully walked over to the bars. The two girls stared at me in silence, then parted so I could see past them. An old man with… a really long nose… was looking at papers in front of him on a desk. When he saw I was awake, he smiled. “Trickster…” he greeted me, “welcome to my Velvet Room.”

I looked around at the other cells in the room. The room was circular and well-lit. There were many cells, but I was in the only occupied one.

“So you’ve come to, inmate,” the mean-looking girl with twin braided buns said.

“The you in reality is currently fast asleep,” the quiet girl continued for her sister, “you are only experiencing this in a dream.”

“You are in the presence of our master. Stand up straight!” the mean-looking girl snapped.

“Welcome,” the man said again, “I am delighted to make your acquaintance.”

“Um… Thank you?” I ended up phrasing it as a question. I wasn’t sure what was going on.

“This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter,” the man continued, “it is a room that only those who are bound by a “contract” may enter. I am Igor, the master of this place. Remember it well.”

“I-I am... Sumomo Inoue,” I said, bowing my head slightly, “It is good to meet you, Igor.”

“A well-mannered prisoner we have,” the angry twin said.

“Enough of that. I summoned you here to speak of important matters,” Igor stated, “It involves your life as well.”

“Important matters?” I asked, placing my hands on the bars of the cell.

“Still, it is a surprise,” Igor said, ignoring me, “the state of this room reflects the state of your own heart. To think that a prison would appear as such… you truly are a ‘prisoner’ of fate. In the near future, there is no mistake that ruin awaits you.”

“...ruin?” I asked. My stomach churned and it felt like my inside froze.

“I speak of the end to everything,” Igor answered me, “however, there is a means to oppose such a fate.” He raised a hand and pointed it at me. “You must be “rehabilitated” toward freedom.” He lowered his hand and smiled at me. “That is your only means to avoid ruin. Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?”

“...wait, what?” I asked, obviously confused about his speech.

“You didn’t decline, hm? Very well, that is enough,” Igor’s smile widened. The churning in my stomach got worse. “Allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation.”

The twins stepped forward again so they were standing in front of me again.

“Ah, pardon me for not introducing the others. To your right is Caroline--” the scary one “--to your left, Justine.” The quiet one. “They serve as Wardens here.”

“Hmph. Try and struggle as hard as you like,” Caroline stated.

“The duty of wardens is to protect inmates. We are also your collaborators. ...That is if you remain obedient,” Justine finished.

“I shall explain the roles of these two at another occasion,” Igor said, and the twins turned away from me. “Now, then,” he continued, “it seems the night is waning… it is almost time. Take your time to slowly come to understand this place. We will meet again, eventually…”

Igor waved his hand, and a bell started going off. “Time’s up!” Caroline said to me, “Now hurry up and go back to sleep!”

Without me even moving, I felt my consciousness drift away… feeling faint, I grabbed the bar tightly to keep myself upright, but my vision still went black.

The next time I opened my eyes, I was staring at the ceiling of the attic. Muted sunlight from clouds outside was showing in my window. ‘Weird dream…’ I thought as I sat up, ‘Ruin… Rehab… what the hell? Is it supposed to mean something?’

I slid out of my bed and started getting dressed when I heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

“I’m getting dressed,” I said flatly, and the footsteps stopped. “Well at least you’re awake,” Sojiro’s voice echoed up the stairs, “when you’re done, meet me downstairs.”

His footsteps went back down and I took a deep breath. That could’ve been awkward.

After dressing into the uniform I was sent, I looked down at the skirt with a frown. The skirt was a lot shorter than my previous school’s. I pulled a pair of black shorts out from my box and pulled them on as well.

When I went down the stairs, Sojiro was seated at the bar. “Good morning,” I said politely with a slight bow.

“...yeah. Let’s go introduce ourselves properly to the staff about your transfer,” he replied, standing, “the school you’ll be attending is in the Aoyama district. It’ll cost you a bit to ride the train there, and the route transfers are a pain.” I imagine so. “I’ll drive you there, but it’s just for today. Let’s go.”

I nodded and followed him outside to his car. It was quiet on the way there, but I was fine with that.

We arrived in front of the academy and got out of the car. “Do me a favor and behave yourself, alright?” Sojiro asked as we approached the gates, “don’t get me wrong - I don’t care what happens to you. Just don’t cause me any trouble.”

‘It’s not like I owe you any favors, old man,’ I thought, but I nodded anyway.

When we entered the principal’s office we were greeted by a large bald man - the principal I assumed - and a tired-looking woman with bobbed brown hair. Sojiro and the principal were talking, and Sojiro was signing papers, but I wasn’t paying attention.

“To reiterate,” the principal finally addressed me, “just so we’re clear, you will be immediately expelled if you cause any problems.” He narrowed his eyes, looking me up and down. “Honestly, I hesitated on accepting someone like you, but there were some circumstances on our side… You might have done a variety of things in hiding in your hometown, but you WILL behave yourself here.”

‘Again… everyone labels me over a misunderstanding.’

“If you are thrown out from our school, there will be no place for you to go. Keep that in mind,” he continued, then nodded to the woman next to him. “This is the teacher in charge of your class.”

“I’m Sadayo Kawakami,” the woman introduced herself, “here’s your student ID.” She placed her plastic card on the desk in front of her. I took it and put it in my pocket.

“Be sure to read the school rules. Any violations will send you straight to the guidance office. And, if by any chance you cause any problems, I won’t be able to protect you at all.”

‘I wouldn’t expect you to.’

“...that IS your promise, yes, Principal Kobayakawa?” Kawakami looked back at the principal.

“Mm-hmm. She is responsible for all her actions.”

“But really though, why me? There should’ve been better candidates,” Kawakami muttered.

“It was a sudden transfer, and your class was the only one that had an opening,” the principal replied.

“If you’re done explaining things, mind if we get going?” Sojiro asked, “I’ve got a store to get back to.” ‘Please. I’m *so* done with this.’

“Sakura-san, please keep a close eye on her,” the principal requested, “don’t let her cause any trouble outside…”

“I’ll be sure to have a serious talk about the situation she’s in,” Sojiro replied.

Kawakami sighed and looked at me. “Come to the faculty office when you arrive tomorrow. I’ll show you to your classroom,” she said.

“Yes, ma’am,” I replied with a slight bow.

Sojiro and I left the office. Nearer to the exit, Sojiro sighed. “They’re treating you like some kind of nuisance…” he muttered.

“At this point, I’m used to it,” I replied with a straight face. 

“Well that’s what it means to have a criminal record,” he added with another sigh, “I guess your past follows you wherever you go.” He looked at me. “By the way… if you get expelled now, I won’t hesitate to kick you out. Got it?”

“I’ll be careful,” I stated. I made sure to keep a straight face and not let my tone change.

Sojiro sighed again. “School never changes, huh…?” he muttered, “c’mon we’re going home.” I nodded and followed him back to the car.

Later, we were in the car in a traffic jam.

“Traffic’s not moving at all,” Sojiro muttered angrily, his finger tapping on the steering wheel, “you’re taking the train starting tomorrow.” He looked at me. “So… how was it? The school, I mean. Think you can manage?”

“It’ll be tough…” I replied. ‘With everyone treating me like a damn criminal,’ I replied in my head.

“You brought it on yourself, though,” he replied, looking back at the road, “Still, you were expelled once already. To think you’d re-enroll at a different one. It’s not like anyone will be sympathetic with you.”

‘I know that already.’

“...if that’s what it’s like at school, people might say stuff about me in the future too…” he grumbled, “what a troublesome kid I’ve taken in…”

“Why DID you take me in, Sakura-san?” I asked.

“I was asked to do it, and I just… happened to agree to it,” he replied, “I’ve already been paid for it too, after all.”

‘It’s always about the money.’

Silence came over the car and the news came on.

“Again, a subway station has derailed at Shibuya Station, greatly affecting the timetable across the-”

“Another accident?” Sojiro said in surprise, “so that’s why it’s so crowded. There’s been a lot of those lately.” I silently nodded, enjoying the silence that came after that statement.

It was nighttime by the time we got back to Le Blanc.

“Damn, to think there’d be so much traffic… What a waste of time. I wasn’t able to open the cafe today…” Sojiro complained to himself. I looked over at him, fighting to keep my expression flat. Though I was quickly losing patience with him.

“...whatever,” he said, then looked at me, “Just head upstairs. There’s something I need to give you.” I raised an eyebrow and did as I was told, heading up the stairs.

Sojiro was checking his phone. “Talk about a gruesome accident… Eighty people were involved,” he said.

“...that sounds terrible,” I said, “I hope everyone’s alright.”

“Hmph,” Sojiro said, putting his phone back in his pocket and pulling something else out. It was a little black notebook. “It’s a diary. Make sure you write in it.” He tossed it onto my desk. “You may be under probation, but there are no special limitations on what you do in particular. ...besides following the law, that is.”

‘Obviously.’

“However, I’m obligated to report on you, which is why I’m having you record your daily activities,” he finished, just as his phone rang. He quickly answered it. “Hey, what’s up? ...I’m about to leave, right now. Don’t worry, I’ll be there in no time. Uh-huh. I’ll see you soon.”

He put his phone back in his pocket. “Well, I’m off,” he said, “I’ll lock the place up, so do whatever you want for the rest of the night.” He narrowed his eyes. “Oh, but don’t mess up my store. If something goes missing, I’ll hand you right over to the cops.” Turn away from me. “You got school tomorrow… you better head off to bed.”

He finally left and I took a deep breath. ‘I should just do as I’m told for now…’ I thought, picking up the diary, ‘I should write what happened today, at least. Then get to bed…’

After quickly writing down everything that happened today in my journal, I headed over to the mattress when I heard ringing downstairs. When I went down there, the yellow public phone was ringing, so I picked it up.

“Yo, it’s me,” the voice on the other end said.

“Who?” I asked.

“Sheesh, you already forgot my voice? It’s Sakura,” the man grumped, “I closed up shop, but I forgot to flip the sign to ‘Closed’.’ It’s too much of a hassle for me to go back, so you need to flip the sign for me.”

“...alright,” I replied, internally sighing.

“...well I’m sure no one’s gonna come, even if it says ‘Open.’ Thank goodness I was able to reach you,” he finished, “but… sorry. Anyway, thank you for answering the phone. Okay then, I’m leaving you in charge of the door sign.”

I said farewell and hung up with a grunt. “You reeeeally like the sound of your own voice, huh…” I muttered, going over to the door. I flipped the sign to ‘closed’ and went back in. ‘Time to sleep… finally…’


End file.
